The Cutest Thing I Have Ever Seen
A cute thing begs hyperbole,
rhetorical questions:
aren’t you just the cutest...
It is little, an it, a thing, small
and low to the ground.
We bend to it, make ourselves
smaller, and squeal in baby voice.
Speech gets tiny and high
to match what is cute, a dialect
of cooing and mock surprise.
We widen our eyes at
the helpless little creature,
it is so small, after all, and
all alone in the big bad
world, weak and can get
picked up by any pair of hands.
In the presence of what
is so cute that we cannot stand it,
we want to eat this thing up,
to protect it by eating it,
hiding it from any pain.
OMG! You overheard me talking to Lily, haven't you? ;-)
ReplyDeleteHappy weekend, lovely you!xoxo
That thing is much too cute (so cute I can't stand it)! I usually move to protect cute things- but this thing, I don't want to eat- I want to make it go away! Still, I'm coming away from that picture, and your poem, smiling... Great poem! I especially love the line, how it can be picked up by any pair of hands, exemplifying how weak the cute thing is, and why we'd want to protect it. The line gives me a feeling as well as an image.
ReplyDeleteThe feeling is a sensation of bouyancy, as if the cute thing has weight as well as weightlessness, as I move to pick it up.
ReplyDeleteKittens! Puppies!
ReplyDeleteHave a great weekend Hannah.
I think she heard me talk to my cats! Happy weekend to you! xo
ReplyDeleteby EATING it...
ReplyDeleteI'd say that's a true description, on second thought.
I'd say you've pretty much nailed the cult of kawaii.
ReplyDeleteFrom Therese B. -- I like how you use the word "hyperbole" (which usually means too much) in a poem about "cute" (too little). In the last lines, you capture the tone of barely-contained venom. Interesting that, among the dictionary definitions of "cute" are: acute, straining for effect, artificial.
ReplyDeleteWe have a cat who is now a year old, but still so tiny. She's quite naughty, too. But I cannot bring myself to get angry at her when she steals things or claws the sofa. She's just too cute!
ReplyDelete